Dearth of female applicants troubling

What do James A. Philomena, Patrick V. Kerrigan, Andrew Polovischak, Martin Emrich and Fred Bailey have in common? They all held positions in the court system in Mahoning County, they all indulged in criminal conduct, and ... they are all white men. (In the Mahoning Valley, white men not only can’t jump — remember the title of the movie? — many of them can’t govern honestly.)

Why, then, do they dominate politics in this region? The obvious answer is culture. Voters in blue-collar Mahoning, Trumbull and Columbiana counties still tend to believe that white men have a divine right to public office. Put a marginally qualified white male against a very qualified white female for some non-judicial high office (the issue of color is a topic for another day) and more often than not the man wins.

No, this is not a screed against guys who are white. Rather, the observation about the outcome of elections in this region is meant to serve as the springboard for a discussion about the judgeship vacancy in the Mahoning County Common Pleas Court, General Division.

With the retirement of Judge Maureen Cronin, who had served 13 years on the bench after a stint as Youngstown city prosecutor, Gov. Ted Strickland has the task of filling the seat.

Shortly after Cronin announced she was leaving, talk emanated from Columbus that the governor, who has demonstrated a commitment to sexual and racial diversity in his filling of top-level state jobs, was interested in selecting a woman to succeed the outgoing judge. It was clear from those who discussed Strickland’s desire that he wasn’t looking for a token. Rather, the former member of Congress who lived in Lisbon before he moved into the governor’s mansion in Columbus believes there are talented, qualified, committed individuals who aren’t the same-old.

Diverse perspectives

Indeed, in discussing the issue of judicial appointments, the governor’s office points to guidelines used in the evaluation: the applicant’s background and ability to serve fairly and effectively; the applicant’s contribution to bringing diverse perspectives to Ohio’s judiciary; and, the likelihood that the applicant could and would effectively campaign to retain the seat if appointed to the bench.

It is noteworthy that women have been most successful in winning judicial offices in the Mahoning Valley. For these positions, qualifications do matter. And, by and large, the judges have shown themselves to be competent and intelligent and possessing of the proper temperament.

Of the four general division judgeships that are now filled — the fifth was Cronin’s — one is held by a woman, Maureen Sweeney. Then there is Judge Beth Smith in the Domestic Relations Court; Theresa Dellick in the Juvenile Court; Diane Vittori in the county court; 7th District Court of Appeals judges Cheryl Waite and Mary DeGennaro; and Youngstown Municipal Court Judge Elizabeth Kobly.

Given this, Gov. Strickland’s desire to replace Cronin with a woman was not only insightful, but honorable.

Thus, when the application process was unveiled, it was thought there would be several highly qualified and experienced lawyers who would toss their hats in the ring.

But much to this writer’s disappointment, of the seven applicants, there was only one woman, Renee DiSilvo-LaCivita, who works for the law firm of Betras, Maruca, Kopp and Harshman.

All men

And when the governor’s judicial screening committee announced the names of the four finalists Thursday, DiSilvo-LaCivita was not among them. The four are Robert E. Bush, Timothy Franken, Timothy Welsh and Wade Smith. Bush and Franken are high-ranking assistant prosecutors; Welsh is a magistrate in Judge R. Scott Krichbaum’s courtroom; and Smith was a magistrate in Cronin’s court. There is a black among the four, Bush.

So, why didn’t more women seek the governor’s appointment? It’s a question Mahoning County Democratic Party Chairwoman Lisa Antonini should answer.

There’s talk that Antonini is supporting one of the four finalists, which may explain why she did not make it publicly known, via a press conference, that she shared Strickland’s hope that a woman would replace Cronin.

This, of course, assumes that she knew what the governor desired.

For those who have forgotten, Philomena was county prosecutor, Kerrigan and Polovischak were Youngstown Municipal Court judges, and Emrich and Bailey were county court judges.